Special Education Coordinator
SCHOOL CITY OF EAST CHICAGO
2025-2026 School Year
Title: Special Education Coordinator
Reports to: Director of Special Education
Job Classification: Exempt
Length: 2025-2026 School Year
Job Goal: The Coordinator’s role is primarily one of consultation, providing assistance, training and coordination to the general education teachers, parents and other members of the child’s team to ensure that students are able to succeed in the classroom.
Minimum Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills and/or Abilities Required):
· Five years’ experience in Special Education
· Certification in a minimum of 2 areas of Special Education Disabilities
· Two years’ experience with Preschool School Evaluation and Assessments
· Two years’ experience with serving as a Public Agency Representative at IEP conferences.
· Experience coordinating First Steps, Head Start and Parent Referrals
Duties and Responsibilities
• Provide consistent on-going consultation to teaching staff to support differentiated instruction for children with IEPs or unidentified developmental disability or
delay in the scope of a mainstream classroom environment.
• In coordination with the LEA, ensure timely identification, referral, identified services and transition support for children with disabilities or previously
unidentified developmental disability or delay.
• Collaborate with preschool classroom teachers, school psychologists, learning disabilities specialists, speech/hearing specialists, and school social workers to
provide an integrated plan for developing the capacities of their students.
• Works to meet child and family goals and needs in coordination with other agencies (Local School Districts, organizations and the medical community.
• Communicate with parents regarding their child’s individualized programming.
• Administer required screenings, assessments and family support services in accordance with classroom screening and assessment requirements.
• Assist in developing schedules and accommodations, program planning, data collection and maintenance of records
• Ensure compliance with First Steps and Head Start mandates, including the tracking of subcontracted programming, outlined in Disability Services Plan.
• Participate in staff meetings and in-service trainings, as required
• Take part in weekly and bi-monthly team meetings.
• Attends and participates in outside meetings as needed; (transition meetings, IEP meetings).
• Participates in relevant/appropriate meetings (i.e. Team meetings, trainings, classroom meetings). Communicates with children, families and other staff in respectful and culturally sensitive manner.
• Maintains confidentiality of children, families and employees of School City of East Chicago
• Works as member of agency team by promoting the mission and philosophy of School City of East Chicago
• Represents School City of East School at community and professional functions as needed.
• Supervision in compliance of the IEP process-IDEA/Article VII
• Attends/Chairs case conferences including Manifestation Determination
• Supervisor over Special Education Preschool Teachers
• Member of the Preschool Evaluation Team, Autism Team and School teams
• Builds and maintains positive collaborative relationships with school personnel
• Parents, community partners.
• Liaison between School City of East Chicago and First Steps, Head Start.
• Assists with response to Due Process Hearing request with IDOE as necessary
• Monitors all Preschool Individual Education Plans for compliance
• Assists principal with training for preschool teachers.
• Assists teachers with student behaviors and strategies and helps in the classroom
• Coordinates / Presentations at Preschool Special Education staff meetings
• Coordination of all Preschool corrections action the planning with IDOE
• Maintain an active I-LEAD account with the state of Indiana
• Performs other duties as assigned by supervisor
POSITION QUALIFICATIONS/REQUIREMENTS:
• Knowledge and direct experience working with children with identified special needs and learning differences in inclusive based - natural environments
• Experience working with children with identified special needs and their families in a home based - setting
• Strong knowledge of theory and practice of child development, early intervention, and infant/toddler mental health services
• Direct experience administering early intervention support services to children between the ages of 0-5 with identified disabilities in center based and home
based settings
• Experience working with families from diverse racial, ethnic, and socio-economic backgrounds
• Knowledge and direct experience with curriculum development and curriculum adaptation for children with learning differences
• Experience working with children on the autistic spectrum
• Strong understanding of infant-toddler mental health
• Relationship- based and family systems based knowledge and applied practice
• Experience administering developmental screenings such as the Ages and Stages Questioner and the Ages and Stages Social Emotional Development.
• Experience administering early childhood development and linguistic assessments such as the Early
Learning Profiles, and assessments.
• Child observation, documentation and qualitative note taking abilities
• Ability to work independently and in a team environment
• Experience in child development, infant/toddler mental health/early childhood special education preferred
• Will consider candidates with a BA and equivalent experience in the field of early intervention, child development/education, and infant- toddler mental health services
ADMINISTRATIVE WIDE DEMANDS:
Job duties will be performed in an office environment and the physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential duties of this job.
• This is largely a sedentary role; however the need for some walking and standing will be required
• The ability to lift up to 20lbs may be needed during some job duties
• The employee will be required to use hands for computer work, answering phones calls…etc.
Working Conditions and Physical Environment
Must have the ability to sit and stand for extended periods of time; exhibit manual dexterity to dial a telephone, to enter data into a computer terminal; hear and understand speech at normal levels; to bend, to stoop, to sit on the floor, to climb stairs, to walk and to reach overhead. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally exposed to angry students/parents and neighborhoods considered to have high levels of violence potential.
This job description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by this employee. The Special Education Preschool Coordinator will be required to follow any other instructions and to perform any other related duties as assigned by the Director of Special Education or appropriate administrator. School City of East Chicago reserves the right to update, revise or change this job description and related duties at any time.
This position is Unionized and does not require bonding.
Please submit a letter of interest and credentials/resume to:
School City of East Chicago
1401 East 144th Street
East Chicago, IN 46312
Benefits
Full Benefits Package including Dental, Vision and Retirement
186 Day Contract - All federal Holidays off - 10 sick and three personal days annually